World’s Greatest Shave

The Leukaemia Foundation’s World’s Greatest Shave is back this year at Federation Square on March 17, from 11am – 6pm.

The iconic fundraiser is one of the largest in Australia, attempting each year to raise money to help beat blood cancer. This year’s target is $17 million, so head down to Federation Square and donate some cash and some locks.

People of all ages are invited to the Fed Square main stage to shave, colour or wax their head, chest or face. If you sign up at worldsgreatestshave.com, you can shave or colour for free.

Guys going for the shave are usually recommended to go down to a number one or number two, whereas girls mostly opt for a number three or four.

If you don’t want to shave, spraying your hair with bright, temporary hair colours is also a fun (and perhaps most importantly, temporary) way to participate.

Neither of these options tickle your fancy? Don’t fret, there’s still more ways to get involved and help raise some money.

Ladies, some other ideas include getting creative with hair extensions, clips and hair ties to create your very own manic masterpiece atop your head, wearing a wig, or simply cutting your hair shorter.

Gentlemen, you can also shave your beard, moustache or sideburns, wax your legs or chest, or use face paint to decorate your head if it’s already bald.

Participants can create an online “shave page” with their photograph and story about why they’re raising money and shaving their head. The Leukaemia Foundation has also created an app for iPhones and iPads called “My Shave”. My Shave allows users to ask all of their contacts to donate in one go.

Those wanting to just donate can do so online using Visa or MasterCard, via BPAY or via direct debit. All banking details can be found at the World’s Greatest Shave website.

If you want to know exactly what your money is going towards, the Leukaemia Foundation alerts participants with badges for each milestone reached.

For example, $250 earns you a “Helping Hands” badge. This means you’ve raised enough money to enable a family to attend a support program related to their type of blood cancer.

$560 is enough money to accommodate a regional family to stay close to treatment in the city for one week, and $4800 will fund three months of laboratory costs for a research project dedicated to finding better treatments for blood cancer.

More than 60, 000 Australians are living with blood cancer or disorders caused by blood cancer. Another 35 people are diagnosed every single day. Blood cancer is currently ranked the third most common cause of cancer related death in Australia and someone loses their battle with blood cancer every two hours.